Mikhail Bochkarev, who was detained in Norway, will file a counterclaim for moral and material damage.

The Federal Council speaker Valentina Matvienko, at a meeting with her subordinate Mikhail Bochkarev, who had returned from Oslo, called his detention on charges of espionage a provocation and stressed that the perpetrators should not be left unpunished. Bochkarev’s lawyer will file a counterclaim for moral and material damage.

“It (the situation) is not to be forgiven. There was not the slightest reason for detention. This story must be brought to the end for those who are responsible this kind of provocation so that there is an understanding that this does not remain unpunished,” Matvienko said.

Bochkarev explained that he was suspected of attempting to hack a Wi-Fi network using a laptop. His electronic devices were seized for examination.

It is to be recalled that the Federal Council employee was detained on September 21 at Oslo airport and released only on October 19. The Norwegian security police demanded the arrest of the Russian official but the court decided otherwise. As Bochkarev noted, the Norwegian side did not bring any apologies, and the laptop may not return at all.